Tons of Marijuana Seized at Mexico Border

Published 7:00 pm, Monday, January 20, 2003

U.S. customs agents seized more than 4 1/2 tons of marijuana hidden in a tractor-trailer that was supposedly hauling bottles across the Mexican border.

Friday's seizure was the largest ever at the decade-old Colombia-Solidarity International Bridge, Customs spokesman Rick Pauza said. He said traffickers might be trying to unload a recent harvest.

The 9,331 pounds of marijuana had a street value of $9.3 million, customs officials said.

An X-ray scanner revealed abnormalities in the cargo, and a drug-sniffing dog caught the scent of marijuana, officials said. The marijuana was found wrapped in plastic and stuffed into 15 large cardboard boxes.

The Mexican driver of the truck was arrested on drug charges.

Customs agents in the South Texas border region from Brownsville to Del Rio seized a record 386,264 pounds of drugs in fiscal year 2002, up 18 percent from the year before, according to the agency. Marijuana made up the bulk of the seized drugs.

The increase in drug seizures is attributed to the heightened security at the border since the Sept. 11 attacks.